The first is a book on permaculture in Britain and other temperate zones. It’s said to be the definitive manual on the practical application of permaculture principles to our islands, written passionately and compellingly by an author who has been an exponent of the permaculture movement since 1990.

As I am a firm believer in permaculture as a movement, I am very much looking forward to this as a read.

The second was inspired by another blogger who posts on perennial vegetables, which sounded like such a wonderful and practical idea that I just had to know more.

Perennial vegetables are those that don’t need replanting annually, but last at least three years in the soil, and in many cases many years more. It contains over 100 perennial vegetables, from the commonplace to some that I have never heard of, with tips on how to source seeds, how to grow them, and recipes for their use.

It looks fascinating, and a quick browse has shown me how many plants I hadn’t even heard about, let alone realised that they were edible and worthy of cultivation!

Let the gales blow and the rain lash the windows this weekend. I will be tucked up on the sofa with these two lovelies and a mug of tea.

3 Replies to “Whilst the gales lash outside..”

Every system or model of agriculture/horticulture has its limits, where conditions are beyond the range of those considered and tested as the method was developed. We have found that in our extreme maritime climate, many of the perennial vegetables simply don’t survive ; and so polytunnels have to be bigger – as well as more robust and not lasting as long, that the environmental sustainability comes into question. Fortunately, permaculture is such a broad church movement, that it is possible to pick and mix techniques and still remain ‘on side’.
D> The weather these past few days – and the next few, is absolutely appalling! So many perennials had started putting out new leaves – which are now blackened and blasted. In some cases they don’t fully recover this season, and that’s how stunted growth goes! The most successful perennials are those that wait until late Spring to start new growth.

Enjoy your books I’m sure you will learn a great deal and that they will provide plenty of food for thought. Permaculture is a natural and sustainable way of gardening and many of us adopt its principles without thinking about it. My neighbours at the Big Garden are right, you will have to grow what suits your climate and soil, and in this part of the world the weather will play a big part in what you can grow in the way of perrennials. Unless your new garden is vety sheltered, you will have to choose those that die down in the winter and don’t come into growth too early. However, don’t be afraid to experiment, you might have some interesting surprises.